How the Richmond Times-Dispatch justifies charging more for holiday papers

The Times-Dispatch tells readers that it’s charging $2.35 for the Thanksgiving Day paper and $1.50 for the Christmas edition. The Thanksgiving paper is so big — 5 pounds last year! — that “many Times-Dispatch carriers must use additional help to complete deliveries in a timely manner.”

Dear EZ Pay subscriber:

The approaching holidays are busy times of the year, so I am writing to provide an update on the ever-popular Thanksgiving and Christmas editions of the Richmond Times-Dispatch.

On Thanksgiving Day, we will deliver the biggest newspaper of the year to your home! We are excited to report it will be loaded with Black Friday sales and savings from all your favorite stores, representing a great way to plan your holiday shopping. Our Newsroom also is planning special coverage and features./CONTINUES

Because of its large size (last year’s was 5 pounds), the Thanksgiving Day newspaper is the most expensive to produce and difficult to distribute. Many Times-Dispatch carriers must use additional help to complete deliveries in a timely manner. Effective this year, we will charge a premium rate of $2.35 for the Thanksgiving Day newspaper. This charge will be debited to your newspaper account on Thanksgiving Day. The small increase in the rate for the Thanksgiving Day newspaper will result in a slightly earlier expiration date for your current subscription term or a minimal increase in the first charge to your credit card or checking account following Thanksgiving Day.

Our Christmas Day holiday edition will be packed with after-holiday savings from your favorite retailers. The day after Christmas is a huge shopping day and we will have a much larger advertising package as advertisers announce their day after Christmas sales. In addition, we will have a much expanded Food section. And we will have a special Family section featuring an essay from a famous Virginia author.

Because of the added expense in producing the Christmas Holiday edition, we will charge a premium rate of $1.50. This will result in a slightly earlier expiration date for your current term.

We hope you can appreciate the value of our holiday editions and the necessity for the premium charge to partially cover our added expenses. Thank you for reading and supporting the Richmond Times-Dispatch.

If you have any questions, please call customer service at 804-644-4181 or toll free at 800-468-3382.